The Sugar Shack, where the guarapo flows

The Sugar Shack, where the guarapo flows

Azúcar – as the late, great Celia Cruz used to shout. (It means “sugar.”) The sweetest drink ever, sugar cane juice, is sold here. Photo by Lore Croghan

Eye On Real Estate

By Lore Croghan

Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Need a sugar fix?

Valentín Palacio Bautista's got one for you at an outdoor fruit and vegetable stand on the sidewalk at the intersection of Irving and Myrtle avenues.

He grinds up stalks of sugar cane in a metal machine and out comes guarapo, a cup of liquid sugar. Yep, sugar-cane juice. Who knew such a thing existed? It's a sweet tooth's dream come true.

Mexicans, Dominicans and Ecuadorians buy guarapo from the open-air sugar shack, but not hipsters.

“No like,” he explained in English. Maybe they just haven't tried it.

Another tropical treat at the stand, which is part of H&M Myrtle Ave. Deli & Grocery at 1513A Myrtle Ave., is coconut cut into shards with the shell still attached. Purchasers slather the coco with hot sauce from Guadalajara.